Trump Slush Fund Is Officially Dead

It should not have even existed in the first place

By: Austin Abbring

June 2, 2026

The Trump “anti-weaponization” fund is officially dead. Finally, some good news. Had this money actually been disbursed, we would have faced one of the lowest points in American political history and one of the worst scandals in decades, if not ever by a sitting President. The House Appropriations Committee’s hearing was held today, and Todd Blanche confirmed that the Trump administration would not follow through on any appeals or further efforts to establish this slush fund. It faced an immediate uphill battle, with Democrats opposed and a portion of Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who heavily criticized it. What remains to be seen is what this settlement will look like now, as other aspects are still being fought in court. I think we have avoided the worst-case scenario in terms of this overall settlement, with the $1.8 billion fund creation being disbanded.

A quick point I would like to address is the speculation as to who would actually receive payments. With no oversight or public transparency, we were left to ponder whether Trump himself would somehow pocket the money, whether his closest allies (donors and corporate backers) would, or whether the January 6th insurrectionists would. I figured a combination of the three would be plausible, but what concerned me the most was rebuilding that coalition of fanatics with such a large fund to work with and the ability that would create for consolidation and strategy heading into the 2028 election. Thankfully, this has been killed because numerous traitors (January Sixers) had already filed claims for compensation before today’s hearing. 

What is interesting is that the Trump administration has made no effort to fight or appeal the subcommittee’s decision. Which surprises me, given how little this administration respects the courts and any ruling by any committee that goes against Trump’s agenda. What it does demonstrate is how much of pawns the actual insurrectionists are for Trump. He does not care about these “boots on the ground”, so to speak. He disparages the people who are being held statutorily responsible for their actions and, in Ashli Babbitt’s case, have died for this movement. It is all about utilizing these people to entrench himself in power. He will continue to use these people to his advantage until they realize he does not care about them and that they are getting nothing out of his presidency. Intellectually speaking, these loyalists are easily manipulated, so they may never fully recognize that they will never be martyrs. Perhaps seeing Trump immediately back down on this, while these individuals are bereft of any compensation, may stir dismay. I will not lose sleep over any of these people’s discontent.